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10.27.12- Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno and Democratic U.S. Senate hopeful Elizabeth Warren converse at a rally in downtown Springfield after Sarno officially threw his support behind the Harvard Law School professor in her bid to unseat Republican Sen. Scott Brown. (Staff Photo by Robert Rizzuto)
(Photo by (Staff Photo by Robert RIzzuto))

SPRINGFIELD - For the past year, both Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown and Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren have been making their rounds through Western Massachusetts, meeting with the voters while aiming to land an endorsement from the mayor of the state's third-largest city.

And on Saturday, Springfield's Democratic Mayor Domenic Sarno broke his silence, officially throwing support behind Warren at a rally with U.S. Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., and other democrats in the heart of downtown.

"I've never campaigned negatively in my life and in the past few weeks, the tenor of his campaign has turned me off," Sarno said. "It's surprised me and hasn't been about the issues. And that is not good for the city of Springfield or the commonwealth of Massachusetts. It's about her ideals and some of the key issues that are of importance to the middle class. She's consistently been a fighter for the middle class and I believe she will be a good federal partner to the city of Springfield."

Sarno and Brown are known to have a good working relationship as the junior senator didn't just show up once in the aftermath of the June 2011 tornado, but followed-up to ensure the city was able to get the FEMA money already approved for clean up.

But while Sarno says he respects Brown, and that the endorsement "isn't personal," he decided that Warren was his candidate of choice for the Massachusetts Senate race because of her performance in the Springfield debate and due to negative campaigning, which he attributes to Brown.

Warren, in accepting the endorsement, talked of Sarno's role in the aftermath of the tornado and fired up the crowd with mentions of the city's struggles and by discussing her take on the Republican Party and its agenda.

"This race is about how we build a future. A future for ourselves, a future for our kids, a future for our grand-kids. The Republicans have laid out their vision- they have made it clear," Warren said. "Their vision-cut taxes for those at the top and let everybody else pick up the pieces. In other words, their vision of America is 'I've got mine, the rest of you are on their own.' We are a better people than that. We are better than that. We believe everybody pays a fair share, even millionaires, billionaires and big oil companies. And we believe we build a future together."

More than 100 people attended the rally outside One Financial Plaza, and Hampden County Sheriff Michael Ashe, Neal, and former Democratic State Rep. Raymond Jordan all addressed the crowd. Organizers said although the rally was initially going to take place inside the building, the number of people who showed up forced a shift to the green space adjacent to Springfield City Hall.

The event took place just a few hundred feet from the MassMutual Center where Warren accepted her party's nomination at the state convention in June.

Sarno's endorsement came as both candidates kicked off a busy weekend spanning the entire state as the election season winds down with ten days until the Nov. 6 election.

Warren started her day at a South Boston canvass kick-off at the Ironworkers Local 7 headquarters before heading to the "City of Homes."

Warren's husband, Bruce Mann, also spent Saturday campaigning on her behalf with a canvass kick-off in Framingham before meeting up with Congressional hopeful Joseph Kennedy III for an event in Brookline.

Brown spent the day campaigning in the greater Boston area. He started his day at a breakfast with supporters in Dorchester before going on to meet others tailgating for the Boston College/University of Maryland football game in Chestnut Hill.

Brown then made a stop at the re-dedication ceremony for the World War II roll call board in Everett and another at a children's Halloween celebration at Castle Island Park in Boston.

"In this political environment there's only one guy that's had the courage and the guts to stand in the middle and compromise to move us forward," Ryan said in an emailed invitation to the rally. "I have been astounded by his courage, foresight and vision. I say to you if we're going to get past the political gridlock, it's going to be through the leadership of Scott Brown."

The Cape Cod Times reaffirmed their decision to endorse Brown in the 2010 special election following the death of longtime Democratic Sen. Edward Kennedy saying that they "look forward to what he will accomplish with the benefit of a full senate term."

The Patriot Ledger reiterated what many middle-of-the-road political observers in Massachusetts have said this election season- "Massachusetts can’t lose no matter who is elected to the U.S. Senate on Nov. 6." The newspaper said its endorsement of Brown, however, rests on his legislative record.

Brown and Warren will square off in one final debate this coming Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the WGBH TV studios in Brighton. MassLive.com will stream live video of the debate and host a live chat providing analysis and background on the statements made by the candidates.